Steam vacuum pump



Mar. 27, 1923. I 1,449,955.

w. s. RICHARDSON.

STEAM VACUUM PUMP.

FILED ocT. 21. 1921.

Patented Mar. 27, 1923.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFHCE.

WILBUR S RICHARDSON, OF ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR TO EMERSON PUMP AND VALVE COMPANY, OF ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA; A CORPORATION OF VIRGINIA.

STEAM VACUUM PUMP.

Application filed October 21, 1921.

T all whom it may com-cm Be it known that I, WILBUR S. RICH- ARDSON, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Alexandria, in the county of Arlington and State of Virginia,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam Vacuum Pumps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to steam vacuum pumps and has for its object a provision of a novel valve mechanism which is effective to automatically open and close under the in fluences or impulses of pressure within the cylinders, augmented or accelerated by the steam used for conducting the pump opera tion.

It is an object of this invention to -provide valves, in a steam vacuum pump, operatively connected one to the other in order that motion imparted to one valve may be communicated to the other valve, novel means being also provided for causing one of the valves to remain seated until dislodged by the impulse within the cylinder which it is guarding.

A still further object of this invention is to produce valve mechanism for steam vacuum pumps which will withstand unusual wear though quite readily accessible for the 30 purpose of repair or the substitution of new parts when found necessary.

A still further object of this invention is to provide means for controlling the passage of steam to the cylinders of steam vacuum pumps, involving simple construction which avoids expensive production and maintenance.

lVith the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, ref erence' will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this application wherein like characters denote corresponding parts 'in the several views, and in which-- Figure 1 is a sectional view of fragments of the cylinders with the valve mechanism partly in section, and

Figure 2 is a top plan view of one of the heads of the valve casings and a fragment of the other head.

In these drawings 5 and 6 denote the two Serial No. 509,315.-

cylinders of a. steam. vacuum. pump having valve seats 7 and 8 respectively, on the ends thereof. A valve casing or cylinder 9 is applied to the seat 7 and a valve ca'sing'or cylinder 10 is applied to the valve seat 8; While I have referred to; the elements 9 and 10 as valve casings or cylinders, these elements will hereafter be referred to as valve casings and it is to be understood that the said term is intended to comprehend any enclosure or partial enclosure relative to which the valves may operate to accomplish the result of the invention as will presently,

appear.

The valve casings are in communication with each other through the medium of the pipe 11 to which a steam supply pipe 12 is connected by the coupling or joint 13. The steam supply pipe may have any appropriate controlling valve 14 and when the said valve is open, steam, will be supplied to the pipe 11 and through it to the valve casing.

Each valve casing has a p'ort'or by-pass 15 by which communicationis established between the interior of the valve casing and the cylinder to which it is applied through an opening 16 in the valve seat 7.

Each valve casing has a valve 17 which is free to reciprocate in it and each valve has a stem 18 extending through a closure plate 19 which is secured on the valve casings by fastenings 20, such as bolts. The plate 19 of one valve casing is connected to the plate of the other valve casing by a web or bar 21, having upwardly extending ears 22in spaced relation to each other, through which a pivot 23 extends, on which the lever 2%. is oscillatably mounted. Each end of the lever has a stud 25 pivotally connected to it and each stud is threaded tothe outer end of a valve stem.

The valves have packing channels" A in which water collects. due to the condensation of the steam, and it has been found in practice that these water seals are effective to hold the steam from escaping and they prove more satisfactory than packing rings, owing to the fact that the packing rings require renewal from time to time and lose their elasticity.

It has been found in practice that a valve mechanism made in accordance with the invention may be caused to operate in positions other than a vertical position, a condition which is of importance in the practical application and employment of the invention.

Each valve 17 has an annular channel 26 preferably about half Way between its ends, and in any event in such position that it communicates with the source of steam supply, while at the same time, it causes stabilization of the valve, due to the pressure of the steam, a condition which is effective to prevent chattering of the valve and it insures the proper seating of the valve after it has been forced to a closed position.

The relation of parts which has been found efficient and satisfactory in practice is illustrated in the drawings, but the inventor does not'wish to be limited with respectvto the exact proportions. However, as shown, the valve, which is in an open position, moves but slightly and hence the movement to a closed position is slight.

In operation it will be understood that the cylinder which is closed by the valve is ,in process of having its trapped steam condensed to form the vacuum or partial vacuum which results in drawing the water into the cylinder and in practice, the said valve remains in the closed position until the steam is almost wholly condensed. The momentum of movement of the water rushing into the cylinder which is closed, under the influence of the vacuum, results in the compression of air which forms a cushion and the said air is forced against the closed valve with an impact suflicient to raise it from its seat to a very limited extent, but

the movement imparted to the said valve in the manner just described is sufiicient to admit steam and the pressure of the steam is effective to force the valve to the limit of its upward movement, or open position, thus.

permitting the entrance of steam into the cylinder which is now practically filled with water. The air that is trapped between the steam and water forms a piston or cushion which prevents the steam from immediate contact with the water, and the condensing of thesteam. While the water is being forced from the cylinder, as described, the steam which had been used to force the water from the other cylinder is being condensed, a condition which results in the formation ofa partial vacuum for drawing water into the said other cylinder. Qf course while this process is proceeding the valve has closed, having been forced to a closed position by the action of steam pressure in the cylinder, as described, and these processes of delivering steam to one cylinder and condensing it and the delivery of steam to the other cylinder and condensing it will be automatically carried on so long as the steam is supplied to the cylinders.

It is a peculiarity of this invention that the apparatus is self-regulating as to the cycles of operation and therefore the pump will operate rapidly or slowly according to the supply of water being pumped. If, for instance, there is only a small amount of water delivered to the pump, it will enter the cylinder slowly and the reversal of the operations of the valves will not take place rapidly. If there is a considerable supply of water to be pumped, the cylinders will be filled more quickly and the cycles of operation willtherefore be more numerous, within a given period of time.

I claim:

1. In a steam vacuum pump, cylinders having valve seats, valve casings thereon, means for supplying steam to the said valve casings, valves in the said casings, each having a circumferential channel between its ends opposite the point of delivery of steam to the valve casing, each said valve casings having passages for steam from the channel in the valve tothe valve seat, an oscillatably mounted member, and means for attaching the oscillatably mounted member near its ends to the said valves.

2. In a steam vacuum pump, cylinders each having a valve seat at one end, valve casings thereon, means for supplying steam to said valve casings approximately centrally of their lengths, valves in said casings each having a circumferential channel so related to the length of the said valve and to the valve casing that the channelis centered with respect to the steam supply for the said casing when the valve is fully unseated and wherein the channel has a restrictedportion opposite the steam supply when the valve is seated, each of said valve casings having a passage for steam from the channel in the valve to the seat of the valve, and an oscillatably mounted member connected to the valves.

WILBUR S. RICHARDSON. 

